Trump Plan To Pull Rug Out From Under Asylum Seekers at Border

Could an executive action stop a caravan of migrants from seeking asylum at the U.S. border? A report from Politico seems to indicate the White House believes it could.

“Under the plan, the Trump administration would publish fast-track regulation that would restrict certain migrants’ ability to seek asylum. The regulation would be paired with a related proclamation from President Donald Trump,” the publication reported Thursday.

A DHS official and an administration official, as well as “three people familiar with the move,” confirmed that the solution was on the table.

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“The administration is considering a wide range of administrative, legal and legislative options to address the Democrat-created crisis of mass illegal immigration,” a White House official told Politico.

“No decisions have been made at this time. Nor will we forecast to smugglers or caravans what precise strategies will or will not be deployed.”

“The DHS official briefed on the moves warned that the administration could abandon the plan or adjust it before moving forward,” Politico reported.

“The actions appear to lean on the same statute behind Trump’s travel ban, according to those familiar with it. The statute states that the president can suspend entry of foreigners deemed ‘detrimental to the interests of the United States.’”

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That travel ban, of course, was upheld by the Supreme Court this past June by a 5-4 vote.

As for Politico, you can probably guess how they felt.

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“The executive actions would follow the playbook of Trump’s most sensational immigration moves and test the bounds of public approval and legality, according to those familiar with it,” the article reads (emphasis mine). “Trump has fumed publicly and privately in recent days about a caravan of migrants traveling north through Mexico and challenged aides to find a solution.”

As for the bounds of public approval, was this what the administration or Homeland Security officials told Politico, or was this their takeaway? One guesses that it’s the latter, particularly given that polling seems to indicate that public approval is no more tested by stopping the caravan than it is by stopping illegal immigration. (Neither seems to trouble the minds of most voters, contrary to what one might read in the pages of the WaPo.)

In terms of testing the bounds of legality, let’s please remember that this would be based off of the same immigration law which undergirded the travel law — which even Politico acknowledges was held up by the court. Is this the “bounds of legality?”

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Of course, part of the issue is that we’re bound by asylum law, which is decidedly problematic in terms of the resources it uses up and the fact it’s often a delay tactic which allows many individuals to simply disappear before they appear in court.

That’s not a problem to liberals, however. In fact, that’s less of a bug and more of a feature.

The Central American migrant caravan is first and foremost a political stunt, but it’s one with a very specific purpose: weakening, via precedent, the ethical and legal basis for patrolling our borders.

The caravan has been embraced and beloved by individuals on the left who believe that borders ought to not exist — at least, as long as it’s our border with Mexico. They still probably want passports checked at the airport, though.

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The Trump administration may not be able to stop that brand of hypocrisy. On the other hand, this is yet more proof they probably can stop the caravan.

C. Douglas Golden is a writer who splits his time between the United States and Southeast Asia. Specializing in political commentary and world affairs, he's written for Conservative Tribune and The Western Journal for four years.

C. Douglas Golden is a writer who splits his time between the United States and Southeast Asia. Specializing in political commentary and world affairs, he's written for Conservative Tribune and The Western Journal for four years. Aside from politics, he enjoys spending time with his wife, literature (especially British comic novels and modern Japanese lit), indie rock, coffee, Formula One and football (of both American and world varieties).